Discussions

When the most recent provincial election was held and the NDP won with Wab Kinew as their leader I was very encouraged and it gave me hope that the people of Manitoba believed in values like inclusiveness, indigenous rights, environmental stewardship and universal healthcare.  
 
That is why the polling in Manitoba during this election is so surprising to me. Under the Conservative government the health care system in Manitoba was ‘broken’ and the NDP looked like the best option to fix it. Maybe the electorate are only concerned about healthcare and the other values are secondary? If so you might be interested in the following,  
 
*From NDP reality check 2024:  
Poilievre stood next to Stephen Harper and voted to cut $43,5 billion in health care transfers to provinces and territories in 2012.  
In 2023, he voted to cut funding for surgery and emergency room wait times by $196.1 billion.  
Poilievre also voted to stop the dental care program, and the pharmacare program that will start by providing free diabetes and birth control medications.*  
I voted NDP in the provincial election but this time around I’ll be voting for whichever candidate appears to have the best chance of defeating the Conservatives. I realize it’s a faint hope in this riding but there’s a lot at stake and I hope there are enough Canadian voters who realize this to make the right choice.  
Pierre Poilievre’s connection to the IDU which supports far right extremists around the world, including Donald Trump, should be very concerning to all Canadians. If you’re not aware of the IDU you might want to do some investigating. Pierre has also stated his intention to invoke the notwithstanding clause, overriding our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and if that doesn’t worry you I don’t know what will.  
Bonus tidbit: From 2018 to 2022, Poilievre used the #MGTOW tag on his YouTube channel—until it was exposed by Global News. MGTOW, short for “Men Going Their Own Way,” is a misogynistic movement linked to incels and male supremacy. When called out, Poilievre offered no explanation or apology—he simply erased it.

is following their  
Declaration of Principles, London 1983 you are wrong about supporting extremists.  
So you are voting to support liberals or the party that enabled Trudeau and his liberal party to financially ruin Canada with their ideological actions, such as slowing down and increasing costs of trans mountain pipeline, refusing to sell natural gas and other energy to other countries, not supporting the building of infrastructure to distribute Canadian energy to all of Canada and to tide water.  
The carbon tax which did nothing or next to nothing to reduce emissions and increased costs of everything we buy and sell. And I doubt that your rebate was greater than what you actually spent if you figure in all of the costs that increased due to the tax.  
Other countries need energy and we have it, If we do not supply it someone else will and there is a good possibility that energy will be coal and or come from countries like Russia. In my opinion Canada's little protest against fossil fuels did nothing to reduce world wide emissions which is more important than just a local reduction if there was a local reduction.  
All that happened was Canada lost out on billions of dollars which could of been used to support social programs, more coal is being burnt, other countries are purchasing their energy from Russia, Iran , Saudi Arabia etc. Also forcing us to sell at a discount to the USA and leaving us more vulnerable to the antics of our southern neighbor. Yes the liberals brought in several new social programs under the whip of the ndp. Now we need to pay for these and I do not believe the current government is the way to do that, all I can see is our debt getting larger to the point that Canada is broke and unable to support any social program.  
 
Edited by floyd2, 2025-04-20 08:15:28

The problem is you’re just repeating the same conservative talking points without having a grasp on the issues.  
 
Your blanket statements about our “ruined” economy is just fear-speak designed to make it seem like that opinion is an unquestionable fact and disputing it would yield no concession from you whatsoever. Your echo-chamber has caused you to form an identity surrounding conservative talking points and that’s by design. Did you know Justin Trudeau is not running in this election? Did you also know that it’s completely normal to maintain the cabinet as interim Prime Minister? You’re not being told that because Trudeau is still the boogeyman. The cons keep beating the same old drum of attacking the party in power because Pollievre is just MINI- TRUMP. Zero substance and nothing but catch phrases and a war against “woke”. He’s spoken in favour of Trumpism and there’s no way we should be allowing that divisive rhetoric to make its way up here.  
 
You’re in an information silo like many on the right. You’ve been convinced not to trust any media that doesn’t conform to your preconceived bias that’s been formulated by being terminally online in safe spaces that ban any dissent from the hive mind.  
 
Carney has established himself as a globally respected expert in economics and that’s precisely what we need to get though the attack from right-wing politicians who are hell-bent on selling is out to Trump.

At least one political writer has dubbed the IDU as the International Dictators Union. The Tyee is a great Canadian publication and here is an older article from them: https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2024/04/05/Democracy-Under-Siege-Globally/  
 
The Conservative party of today is closely aligned with the kind of politics we’re seeing right now south of the border. Pierre Poilievre seems to be following the maga playbook, so if you’re not happy with the antics of our southern neighbour you may not like how it would go under the present day CPC.  
 
As far as ruining Canada goes, I certainly don’t agree with you. The Liberal government under Justin Trudeau didn’t get everything right but they had to lead us through a global disaster during covid. I understand that there were some mistakes made with covid relief but Canada came through the pandemic in much better shape than many countries.  
 
Pipelines are a hugely complex issue and to the best of my knowledge will have to involve consultations with indigenous peoples.  
 
Canada currently does sell gas and oil to other countries and most of it goes to the United States. With the Trump tariffs Canada is now looking at other markets.  
 
The lower price offered to the United States for oil compensates refiners for the additional capital investment required to process heavy Western Canadian Select . It was a mutually beneficial arrangement between the two countries.  
 
I actually was one of the people who benefited from the carbon tax rebate, partly because I have a small car and don’t travel much. I understand that the carbon tax was very unpopular with a lot of people though, and it was probably a good thing that Mark Carney cancelled it.  
 
Mark Carney is an educated and intelligent person who is qualified and capable. He is our best chance of getting through these difficult times. It’s time people stopped complaining about Trudeau and got on with supporting the job of getting us through the tariffs and the threat of being annexed by the United States.

While I appreciate the comments above, I'm looking at the election in Brandon-Souris in a more local perspective. Whether you support or don't support the Liberal Party, I don't believe that the local Liberal candidate is well enough known to have a chance to upend the Conservative candidate Grant Jackson. I do think that NDP candidate Quentin Robinson does have a chance of capturing the riding. He only lost by 100 votes in the Provincial Election in the Brandon West riding that is more Conservative that the full federal riding. I'll be voting NDP for the first time in 50 years - we need a representative in Brandon-Souris that isn't just a "yes man" to the federal Conservatives. Local issues: When the City of Brandon was applying for federal grant money for housing, Pierre Poilievre ordered all of his caucus to refrain from supporting any of their ridings applications because it might make the Liberal's look good. Like a loyal follower, Larry Maguire did nothing to assist Brandon with the application. Fortunately, we still got Millions of dollars from the program. This time around, City council has just approved increased development fees after a very long process studying the issue. Some were for and some against but at the end of the day, they did what they felt was best for the people they represent - the citizens of Brandon. Last week, Pierre Poilievre announced if he were elected PM, he would put a stop to cities charging development fees. Would Grant Jackson follow along like a good little boy and vote with his leader or would he do what is best for his constituents and support our council's decision? Like Poilievre, Mr. Jackson has been a career politician so I think it is clear, he'd be looking out for his pension and staying in PP's favour before he'd look out for Brandon.

Just one quick comment on those increases. I think you will find some bigger builders looking outside of the city to build as they were given no consideration or consultation on these charges.  
I am not saying they shouldn't have gone up but I think the increases were ridiculous. The loss of property tax charges and these increases will get passed onto the renter which is unfortunate. The builder isn't going to take these hits into their profit...it will come out somewhere.  
 
Edited by wheatcitygirl, 2025-04-21 09:53:08

I didn't bring up the development fee increases to discuss the pros and cons or whether the amount of the increase is appropriate. The point is that this is what Brandon has decided to put in place so my question remains: will Grant Jackson follow along like a sheep and support PP or will he support his constituents?

I think the question then becomes: what is best for his constituents? Clearly, the poster above doesn't agree that it's in everyone's best interest, and makes a valid point about costs being passed along to renters.  
 
Note, I am an ABC kind of voter so my reply has nothing to do with supporting the Conservatives, but a pragmatic question about how priorities are defined.

I grew up with Mr. Robinson’s children as we’re from the same small town. He’s a really knowledgeable, smart and kind man. His wife is also super amazing and so caring. He got my vote this year!

I don't think the point was about whether that decision was good or bad. It is just an example highlighting who's responsibility should those types of decisions be? There is a concept in business that the person closest to the work might actually be the best person to make some decisions about the work they are doing. Right now that decision is a tool that can be used locally, and people can make their voice heard locally on vote for or against people who made that decision locally. Taking it away is saying that the "higher ups" don't believe that is a tool that lower levels of government should have.  
 
In some cases, that can be valid, but taking away power at government levels closest to the people should always be looked at carefully.

Builders will go where the profit and need drives them. Simply building outside of City boundaries isn't a solution to avoiding development charges. Usually building outside a developed zone like a City means that 100% of those same development costs like supplying adequate power, roads, and utilities like water and sewer are taken on by the developer. In a City, that road network, and utilities are already present. What the City is charging is upgrades associated with that development, such as providing traffic signals, upgrading land drainage and transit to support the added population.  
 
Let’s all remember that the charges are only a portion of the cost to cover the added maintenance needed for increased use of the already established infrastructure like utilities, transit and traffic control devices. Without the DC's the City will fall behind in servicing the debt related to improving the existing services, thus facing the need to raise property taxes, meaning everyone's rent or monthly mortgage goes up, regardless if you live in Lion's Manor or Brookwood. Some might think it unfair to pay more in taxes/rent if they live nowhere near a new development.  
 
Edited by PrimeConvoy, 2025-04-22 09:40:56

I have yet to hear any politician tell me that they will do something about the waiting times in the hospital and shortage of beds or to bring the grocery prices down which are two huge issues for most of us.. All they do is knock on your door and say, “ can we count on your support”? No you can’t! Do something to help us. We all need to eat, and we will all end up in the hospital at sometime!

The reason you won't hear any candidate speak about wait times or grocery prices is because Health Care is the responsibility of the Province. You need to turn to Wab Kinew and the Provincial NDP if you want solutions on that front, same goes for schools and Universities.  
 
And what would you expect the Government to do in order to drop grocery prices? With the wild and unpredictable nature of the American political landscape, lowering prices at the grocery store are nearly impossible. And there is little the Government can do to influence a downtrend in prices at the retail level.  
 
Inflation is and always be a part of our lives. What is really needed is a push for more livable wages. The last thing we need is Government to dictate to retailers what they are allowed to charge for their goods, just ask a farmer.

Government can do a lot to drop the prices of grocery.  
Canada is only country in the world still living in orthodox of quota systems in food chain and guess who majority owns those through several layers are billionaire families like saputo , irving to name few across Canada.  
 
Open the markets let's have fair competition and let new businesses allow in the markets.  
 
There is either monopoly, duopoly or some kind of mix in majority of sectors which ultimately leads to higher prices.  
 
There is only one example in recent years which is still in courts of bread price fixing. It happens at all groceries at some level but the Government needs to intervene and take appropriate actions.  
 
If possible go for debate at brandon University tonight and ask questions if allowed directly to CANDIDATES.  
 
You need to see beyond North America and Learn.  
Do ou know Canada has British monarch though we are independent Nation?  
 
No candidate will speak on this why?  
We still follow old British Era regulations of quotas and restricting new business.

How is inflation going in the USA? Stats have shown that inflation in both the US and Canada are basically identical. Right now, the consumer price index in Canada is 2.6% and in the US it is at 2.4% and rising, despite a promise by the Trump administration to drastically lower inflation.  
 
And remember, price fixing is NOT the same as inflation. Prices can go down as a result of price fixing, as seen in gas wars.  
 
And business and commerce laws are largely regional. For instance, starting an incorporated business in Manitoba is fare more difficult than it is in Saskatchewan or Alberta. However, we are friendlier to co-ops and community owned businesses like Westman or or variety of credit unions.

We’ll prime convoy the way you put it then is that there is basically no help for groceries or hospital beds that we just look out for ourselves. So what good are mini Trump and mini Trudeau if they can’t and won’t help the average citizen! Well neither one will get my vote! We will eat balogna and hot dogs till our health fails then when we have to go to the hospital and there’s no beds and a shortage of doctors we will just die! So only the really wealthy will hang in there. That’s a page right out of Trump’s book that is in our future!

throwing up our hands and saying “both sides are the same” isn’t the answer. It’s actually dangerous to lump “mini Trump” and “mini Trudeau” together like they’re doing the same thing, because they’re not.  
 
One political side is literally fighting for things like pharmacare, dental care, national childcare, stronger public health care, more grocery price regulation, and housing supports. It’s not perfect, and it’s not fast enough, but it’s real movement.  
The other side — the Trump-style politics — is out there blocking those programs, slashing taxes for billionaires, and pushing “you’re on your own” policies harder than ever.  
 
Saying nobody deserves your vote just hands power to the people who want privatized hospitals, two-tier health care, and an America-style “only the rich survive” system even faster.  
 
If you’re angry about bologna, hospital beds, and grocery prices, good! But the answer isn’t to check out — it’s to get loud and back the people actually trying to fix it, even if it’s slower than we want.

I still feel that in Brandon-Souris, we have one option to make things better and that is to vote NDP. Of course they won't win the federal election but voting for the Liberal Candidate in this riding is handing another seat to PP. If the NDP can win in Brandon-Souris, that is one more seat the Conservatives don't get.

I don't get your line of thinking, how is a vote for the Liberal candidate the same as voting Conservative?

My point is this, the feds can only provide funding to the provinces, and its the provinces that decide what to do with that money.  
 
So yeah, the candidates can make all the promises they want, but at the end of the day the management of the health care system falls on the Province.  
 
If you want to see specific changes from the federal government, you may want to look at income taxes, border security, international trade, defense, immigration, housing spending (CMHC), and federal transfer payments, which pay for things like education and health care, but are governed by each province.  
 
You really should educate yourself on the role that each branch of government plays.

MY point is that if your basically waste your vote on the Liberal (who hasn't got a chance to win), then, it isn't a vote for the other candidate who may upset Jackson. It's going to take every vote possible to not let the PC's win this riding again. Voting "any thing by PC" is our only chance to avoid Poilievre being PM.

Well Carney is in.  
 
Let's see how he takes on Trump/tarriffs and all the other issues this country is currently enduring.  
He's not Trudeau, so maybe change is what Canadians wanted. We shall see how this term plays out...